Anarchists Against the Wall and Bil'in Popular Committee awarded Carl von Ossietzky Medal

International League for Human Rights honors two groups for their courageous dedication to human rights

Anarchists Against the Wall and the Bil'in Popular Committee exemplify the nonviolent resistance to the Israeli-built "Separation Wall" on Palestinian land, as well as steadfastness in the diverse grass-root campaigns against the Israeli Occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

International League for Human Rights
In the spirit of Carl von Ossietzky

The Executive Board
Berlin, October 13 2008

Press Release
Awarding of the 2008 Carl von Ossietzky Medal

The awards ceremony for this year's Carl von Ossietzky Medal will be held on December 7, 2008 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the “Haus der Kulturen der Welt” (the House of World Cultures), Berlin.

(The press conference will take place on December 6, 2008 at 10:00 a.m. in the House of World Cultures.)

The Board of Trustees of the International League for Human Rights honors two groups for their courageous dedication to human rights:

Israeli journalist and peace activist Uri Avnery will speak as guest of honor at the awards ceremony. He will also speak at the press conference.

Sixty years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was proclaimed by the United Nations' General Assembly (on December 10, 1948), the Carl von Ossietzky Medal for outstanding service in the realization of basic and human rights has special significance.

May 4, 2008 was the 70th anniversary of the death of Nobel Peace Prizewinner and pacifist Carl von Ossietzky, who, because of his staunch resistance to militarism, war and racism, was taken by force to the Sonnenburg concentration camp (located near the present-day Polish city of Slonsk), where he was cruelly tortured. With this in mind, the International League for Human Rights' Board of Trustees salutes two organizations that - with the courage of their convictions, in keeping with Carl von Ossietzky's spirit - struggle jointly for a common cause.

Anarchists Against the Wall and the Bil'in Popular Committee exemplify the nonviolent resistance to the Israeli-built "Separation Wall" on Palestinian land, as well as steadfastness in the diverse grass-root campaigns against the Israeli Occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

These groups incarnate a forward-looking culture free of exclusion and destruction, demonstrating thereby the possibility of living together in peace and freedom.

They also consistently represent their cause on the international stage: The Bil'in village, for example, sued two Canadian real estate companies in Quebec's Superior Court for their part in constructing the Israeli settlement of Modi'in - mostly on Bil'in's land.

The two groups were founded by young activists around the same time:

Anarchists Against the Wall was formed in 2003 to protest Israel's construction of the Wall.

The Bil'in Popular Committee was founded in December 2004 in reaction to Israel's planned - and in the meantime fully realized - "barrier fence" that separates the village of Bil'in from 60% of its fields and olive groves.

The two groups owe their effectiveness to their politically independent, self-determined, transparent and nonviolent practices. Friday demonstrations at the barrier fence in Bil'in have been organized by the village's popular committee every single week since 2005, leading to the formation of a broad international network of support and protection. The Israeli Border Police shoot tear gas, rubber- and steel-coated bullets, and - most recently - stink bombs at the demonstrators at close range, untroubled by causing the nonviolent protesters serious bodily injuries.

By honoring Anarchists Against the Wall and the Bil'in Popular Committee, the Board of Trustees of the International League for Human Rights highlights the organizations' common conviction that helps them surmount great obstacles and dangers in their mutual ideal of a worthy - and shared - future. Their exemplary activities are – in the age of globalization - of great significance for the realization of the ideals of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights - well beyond Israel/Palestine.

With his comrade Rachel Avnery, Uri Avnery will take part in the awards ceremony where he will speak as the guest of honor. He will also speak at the press conference. In 2001 Uri Avnery received - along with Rachel and the Israeli peace group, Gush Shalom - the Stockholm Alternative Peace Prize. He was further honored by the City of Osnabrück with its Carl von Ossietzky Prize in 2002. Already in 1995, Uri Avnery had received Osnabrück's Erich-Maria Remarque Prize, and in 1997, the Aachen Peace Prize.

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From 5-15 April 2009, a member of Anarchists Against the Wall, Haggai Matar (well-known also for his anti-militarist work, since he was one of the first of the new wave of political objectors to military service), will be in Italy for a speaking tour with the dual aim of providing updates on the current situation in the struggle against the wall and the occupation, and of collecting funds for the activities of AAtW. If you can, please come to one of the events below. If you are unable to attend but you want to contribute to the work of AAtW, please log on to http://awalls.org/donations for details on how to do so. [Italian]

Ahmad Husam Yousef Mousa, 10 years old, was murdered yesterday as he demonstrated together with his friends against the separation wall which is being constructed on the lands of his village Ni'ilin. When Ahmad and his friends reached the construction site the soldiers shot rubber bullets at them and they began to
retreat. At that point one of the soldiers shot a live round at Ahmad's head from a distance of about 10 meters.

The Kobane resistance that has passed its 45th day as of now has caused the attention of revolutionaries all over the world to turn to Rojava. As a result of the work carried out by Revolutionary Anarchist Action (DAF), anarchist comrades from many parts of the world have sent messages of solidarity to the Kobane resistance.(1) This internationalist stance without a doubt carries great importance for the people resisting in Kobane. However if we do not analyze what is happening in all its truth and if we romanticize instead, our dreams will turn to disappointment in short order.

The main features of the Syrian revolution are its youthful, spontaneous aspect, and the fact that it was created on the streets and is linked directly to the people. It is a revolution without centralized control, led by insurgent individuals. Consequently, no-one can claim to govern it or lead and the reason is simple: the young insurgents rose up spontaneously and there are no signs of participation by religious elements, whose ideas are extremely reactionary, or indeed by any other tendency. [العربية ]

From 5-15 April 2009, a member of Anarchists Against the Wall, Haggai Matar (well-known also for his anti-militarist work, since he was one of the first of the new wave of political objectors to military service), will be in Italy for a speaking tour with the dual aim of providing updates on the current situation in the struggle against the wall and the occupation, and of collecting funds for the activities of AAtW. If you can, please come to one of the events below. If you are unable to attend but you want to contribute to the work of AAtW, please log on to http://awalls.org/donations for details on how to do so. [Italian]

Ahmad Husam Yousef Mousa, 10 years old, was murdered yesterday as he demonstrated together with his friends against the separation wall which is being constructed on the lands of his village Ni'ilin. When Ahmad and his friends reached the construction site the soldiers shot rubber bullets at them and they began to
retreat. At that point one of the soldiers shot a live round at Ahmad's head from a distance of about 10 meters.